Hedges

We moved into our current home almost 12 years ago, leaving our quaint neighborhood in West Monroe. It seems like yesterday. But Daniel was just a little tot back then, and now he's taller than me! We bought this house for a couple of reasons. First, I've had an office in my home ever since I started my own company back in 1994. It seems surreal, but when I started in this business, we hand-signed three reports for every lender. We hand-taped 35mm photos on to every report. We physically made maps, floor plans, plats, etc. Then we'd hand-deliver every report. Guys, that was just a decade ago! (Now, everything is done on the computer and all reports are sent via the internet.) Well, back 12 years ago, it seemed like I spent half my day driving back and forth across the Lea Joyner Bridge delivering reports. So, when we saw a chance to get back to Monroe, we jumped. Second, this house we found has the biggest back yard in our neighborhood! We had a nice big back yard in West Monroe, but it rolled and tumbled and mowing it was a huge chore.

Well, our back yard here is awesome! Flat, lots of grass, and it was already fenced in when we bought the house. Plus there were really nice hedges surrounding the chain link fence. And the bi-level deck was lagniappe.

Our back door neighbor, an elderly lady named Mrs. Howe, used to watch me and Daniel jumping on our trampoline. When Daniel was little, he, Angie, and I spent a lot of time in our new back yard...not to mention all of the kids John and Meredith entertained out there. Mrs. Howe always told us that it brightened her day to see us playing as a family. Something occurred to me...Mrs. Howe hasn't said anything to us in a while. We've certainly been out back jumping on the trampoline, grilling, and entertaining on the deck. But I haven't seen Mrs. Howe...and then it dawned on me. She can't see us anymore! Our hedges are so tall that they have taken the form of a privacy fence. You'd have to get up really close to the fence and squint through the leaves to see us now. We've encapsulated our back yard with hedges.

Now I'm not writing this to say you should cut down your hedges. We all need our privacy from time to time. But I found it interesting that we allow things to grow in our lives that prevent us from having human interaction. Sometimes it takes on the form of hedges, like my ligustrums. And sometimes they take on the form of attitudes. We shun some people because we don't like them any more, don't approve of what they're doing, or don't like who they're spending time with. Any way you slice it, we're building a barrier that prevents us from communicating with one another. I think that's a tragedy. God put us on this planet to interact and help one another. In my opinion, the treasures we'll receive in heaven will be directly related to how we've built friendships here on earth.

So, don't be surprised to see my hedges trimmed back in the next few months. Drop by and see us sometime. If we don't answer the door, come around back to the deck. Chances are good that we are either grilling, jumping, or entertaining. And if you still don't see me, check the very back of the yard...I might be trying to talk with Mrs. Howe.

Sour Grapes Make For a Good Whine

I'm going to use my new-found encouragement to write on my blog to expose you to my feelings, like it or not. If you're not interested in hearing my gripes, complaints, laughter, and honesty; then, by all means, please stop reading now. I'm not sure where this will wind up and I don't want you to feel like you've been forced to attend my private pity party. So the weak of heart should stop reading now. I really mean it...stop right now!

Are you still with me? Well, ok, let's see where this goes. You've been fairly warned that you're strapping in for a ride on my emotional roller coaster. Some days I wonder how many drops and turns this coaster has.

For two weeks, I had been anticipating the Strauss Awards show. "Sugar" ended on a positive note and I missed seeing my friends from the theater. So maybe I built this thing up in my mind to be some catharsis of all the fun I had this year playing three different parts on stage. I felt like all three characters that I created were distinctly different and were memorable. (Unfortunately, my favorite character, Pete, wasn't nominated for an award because the dinner theater wasn't a part of Strauss' regular season.) At any rate, I didn't expect to win every category, but I did hope to win at least one. Turns out, I was 0 for 3. In the first category, I was up against my three gangster buddies from "Sugar." Truth is I wanted them to win and they did. Tony, Paul, and Caleb stole the show and deserved the award....hands down! The next award I really wanted...with a passion. The character was Vinnie, who was a little slow but kind-hearted and sincere. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. The "Streetcar" steamroller had already started and all of the "Oscar & Felix" poker buddies were squashed in its wake. My last chance was for Spats. The character was memorable; but in my heart, I wanted my buddy Matt to win for Willard in "Footloose." He brought the house down every night with "Mama Says." Well, neither one of us one that category. Like I said, 0 for 3. Ouch, baby...very ouch. What's that smell? Toast!

Now I'm a grown man, or at least I pretend to be one. I had convinced myself early in the week that win or lose, I wouldn't care. Boy did I get that wrong! As the night went on, my head started hurting like somebody was hitting me with a hammer. What was bringing the constant THUD, THUD, THUD? Probably my ego taking a beating. I was right about one thing though...having one of those little trophies doesn't add another minute to my life. However, I have to admit...I was physically hurting from not being recognized for a job well-done. I wasn't prepared for that feeling. Here's the good news...it made me think back to last year's award show. I wasn't nominated for anything, but my youngest son, Daniel, was up for two awards. When he didn't win either one, I noticed his whole demeanor changed. He sunk into the car seat on the ride home and he didn't talk much the rest of the night. I shrugged it off. I kept thinking "Welcome to the NFL!" I didn't empathize with him at all. On last Friday night, God gave me a taste of that humble pie to help me remember Daniel's sorrow. Wow, did I learn a lesson or what? Praise God!!!

I didn't write an acceptance speech for the night. Good decision, huh? But I did have an idea of how I was going to thank a bunch of folks. Mostly I was going to talk about how I prayed before every performance. On the night of my very first play, I remember sitting silently in the wings and praying just before the curtain went up. It's important for you to know that I lost both my father and mother before I started doing plays. Neither one has ever been physically present in the crowd to watch any of my performances. It makes me tear up thinking about it now. Like most people, I want my parents to be proud of me. Doesn't everybody want their parents' approval? Since they weren't in the audience the first night, in my prayer, I asked Jesus to let them have the best seats in the house...right next to Him. So every night before the curtain would rise, I asked Jesus to watch my performance...and I asked Him to let my mom and dad sit next to Him. It comforted me and made me strive to do better each performance. I've continued this ritual every performance even until today.

To sum it up, I learned more from losing than I ever would have learned from winning. I know I will be very sympathetic to anybody who doesn't finish first. There were a whole lot of people who didn't win the other night...but they are still winners in my book. If I could have written the script for the awards, "Oscar & Felix" would have won best play, Matt would be gleefully showing off his Christopher, and I'd probably have one to boot. But thank God it didn't work out that way! And for the record, if you asked, I wouldn't trade the laughter I had backstage nor the the friendships I made for any award...100 times out of 100.

As I wrap this up, let me share this...since "Oscar & Felix" was completely shut out of the awards the other night, I've made a video to help us remember just exactly how much FUN it was! This is our award...the laughter and the friendships!

Blog Blues

This weekend, I found out that one of my friends missed my written blogs. As most of you know, I've been in an image tsunami...video images, digital images, etc. If I didn't have a corresponding image, I wouldn't post anything. Kinda sad, huh? Not to mention that I've been flirting with Facebook ever since I sank my teeth into "Sugar." Who can blame me, though? There were plenty of "Kodak moments" during the rehearsals and the run of the play. Plus, Facebook upped my viewership just by clicking the "tag" button. So if you're gonna accuse me of being a sell-out, remember I just struck while the iron was hot.

But, just like anything unused, my talents have atrophied. I've heard that jets rust faster sitting on the ground than they ever will while flying in the air. From my own personal experience in real estate, I know houses that are vacant go to waste the quickest. I could go on, but I won't. You know what I'm talking about, right?

Please take this as my announcement that I'm going to start writing again. I've got about 2 or 3 ideas swirling around in my head already. Now you can't say I didn't warn you.

Oh, and by the way, thanks Kelly!

A Scavenger Hunt

For Daniel's 13th birthday party, we hosted a birthday party and scavenger hunt. Two teams...ready, set, go!

Angie drove one car and I drove the other. Part of the hunt required the teams to go to various places throughout Monroe and take photos of them performing whatever was on the list. Daniel's team won by the skin of his teeth. Angie swears we cheated, but what our team did clearly was not spelled out on a "Don't Do This" list. I made this little video for all of the kids and gave them all credit for winning.

Give It Up for the Crew!!!

As promised, I made a video to highlight the unsung heroes of Sugar...namely, the folks backstage that make it all happen. Most nights, when all is going well with a play, we forget to tell them how important they are to the success of the production. I know I didn't tell them enough. So, this is my way of saying "GREAT JOB" to all those people who helped bring Sugar to the Strauss.

I apologize that I didn't get to film everybody for this project. If I had video, I used it. If I had a photo, I used it. And when I didn't have any images, I wrote a scrolling credit. Hopefully, no one was left out.

Remembering Those Who Made It Fun

I always like to see the actors with their character names underneath them during the end credits. So, I made this little sentimental vignette for that purpose. One thing to note...I didn't try to re-invent the wheel. I used the cast order from the printed programs for this movie. The only exception is I placed myself at the end...not for glory but to fill up space while the song ended. It actually worked out just right.

Later in the week, I'll make another one specifically for the director, musical director, choreographer, and other crew members. Be on the look-out for that one. We had a great crew!

Introducing the cast of Sugar!

Let's Hear It For The Boy

This One's For Matt

Matt and I made a video together a couple of months ago. Afterwards, we filmed a little short spot with us laughing...totally unrehearsed. Interestingly, we both ended it the same way...walking off. I released a 2x-speed version on my blog back then. He and I talked about releasing various versions of the video, but I never got around to doing it.

So, this one's for Matt. I finally took the time to re-release this little snippet with a slight alteration. Hope you enjoy!

Trouble In Paradise

Somebody secretly recorded this footage in the men's dressing room. Evidently, Spats' posse is feeling a little dissed.

da Gang...doing what we do best

I always listen to Johnny Winters in my car as I'm driving to a performance. I like to think that Spats would have listened to this had he been around in the late 60's and early 70's. It certainly helps me get into character.